


Proper Impressed

by duchessofthemoonbase



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Death Eye Turtle Army, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-20 19:22:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17628173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/duchessofthemoonbase/pseuds/duchessofthemoonbase
Summary: The Doctor comes to save the day......but there's already another blonde timelady on the scene who seems to have it covered.





	Proper Impressed

The cave was slowly filling with water, but there was still enough space for the Doctor to hop from rock to rock, her three friends traveling behind, as they went farther and farther into the cave.

“Do you think this is where we’ll find the people who have been killing the Peladonians?” Yaz asked. “You think they live inside a cave?”

“Not very comfy,” Graham mumbled, stopping to rest against a wall.

“A bit damp,” added Ryan.

“Well,” the Doctor said. “The tracker Alpha Centauri gave us seems to indicate that all of the traces left by the weapons lead back to here…so I think it’s our best shot. Come on!”

Ryan sighed as he took his time navigating from one rock to the next. “Hey,” he whispered to Graham and Yaz. “Did anyone else think that Alpha Centauri bloke looked a bit like a—”

“Shut it!” the Doctor said, glaring back at them. “People like you are the reason she feels like she has to wear that cape.”

When the Doctor came to what looked like the end of the cave, she found a small door built into the wall. “Aha!” the Doctor said, sonicing it open. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”

Behind the door was a tunnel just large enough for the average humanoid to crawl through comfortably. She signaled for the rest of the team to follow her, ready to confront whatever waited on the other side. As they began to crawl over the damp rock, they heard an assertive, yet aristocratic female voice already projecting through the cave.

“And _really_ , to think you could get away with it for so long! After you _specifically_ asked the parliament to give you access to the Drahvinian intelligence briefings, you go and take that information and use it to—”

“Doc?” Graham said. “I think there might already be somebody here.”

“Oh,” the Doctor said, crawling out of the tunnel with a shocked look on her face. “I suppose there is.”

The Doctor helped her friends stand up until the four of them were standing in the corner of a massive, cathedral-like space inside of the cave. Stalagmites and stalactites decorated in gold and silver vines adorned the floors and ceilings. The room centered on a pedestal on the far end of the room, where a small box turtle was perched. He was about the size of a regular garden turtle, but he stood on his hind legs and had a tiny eyepatch and a suit of metal armor. Behind him were hundreds, maybe thousands, of similarly adorned turtles, in what could only be described as a massive kind of turtle parliament.

“He’s kinda cute,” Graham said.

“Yeah, so was the Pting!” Ryan replied in a terse whisper. “Didn’t mean it was nice to us!”

In front of the turtle and his compatriots was a regally beautiful woman with long blonde hair standing steadfastly in front of the lead turtle, still taking him on. She was dressed in a long scarlet coat and riding boots.

The woman froze with a slight look of annoyance and looked over at the four newcomers. “Is there a problem?”

“No, no,” the Doctor said, and then looked anxiously over at the head turtle. “Well, actually, yes, a slight problem.”

“Does it have to do with the massacres on Peladon?”

“Precisely.”

“Well,” she said. “I think I have it covered. Now if you don’t mind, I’m in the middle of negotiations.”

“—but!”

“I’m absolutely serious.”

The Doctor sulked and took a few steps back as the woman resumed talking to the turtle. Graham was laughing.

“What?” the Doctor asked.

“She stole your thunder,” Graham said, as Ryan and Yaz started laughing along with him. “She’s doing all your usual Doctor stuff.”

“Hey!” the Doctor exclaimed. “I’ll have you know I know that woman personally.”

“Really?” Yaz asked.

“Yeah,” the Doctor said. “It’s Romana. She’s a fellow Timelord. We go way back.”

Romana turned back around, looking agitated at the fact that she still had spectators. “I really did mean what I said when I told you I had this covered. This is an incredibly delicate political discussion and your presence is not helping matters.”

The Doctor smiled. “It’s fine. I mean, this is what, the 38th century? By now the Death Eye Turtle Army has abandoned most of their _really_ barbaric practices, so—”

Romana’s eyes bulged as the Doctor kept talking. Suddenly, the entirety of the turtle parliament stood up on their hind legs and pulled out their tiny swords.

“The humanoid stranger DARES to call us barbaric!!!” screeched the head turtle.

Romana glared at the Doctor. “Do you see _now_ what I meant by delicate?”

“Oh,” the Doctor said, quickly searching her mind for a possible solution. “I’m sorry!” she yelled across the room. “I really didn’t mean it, I have great respect for—”

“CHARGE AT THE HUMANOIDS, MY CHELONIAN BRETHREN. DESTROY THEM.”

“Okay,” the Doctor said, panicked. “At this point, we run.”

Romana, the Doctor, and her friends quickly crawled through the cave tunnel out of the massive room and into the main part of the cave. They could hear the sound of thousands of tiny feet behind them. The Doctor stopped at the entry point to the tunnel, and Romana turned to her in disbelief.

“What are you doing!?” she screeched. “Let’s go!”

“No,” the Doctor said, “Their weapons technology is too advanced. They’d wear us down and kill us easily before we got out of the cave. And it’s clear that they’re not going to listen to anything I tell them regardless. Can you believe it’s taken me this long to find a species that refuses to sit down and chat for a bit before they try to kill me?”

“Okay,” Romana said. “So what do we do?”

“We block off the entrance to the cave,” the Doctor said. “It’s the only way.”

“How?” Ryan yelled. “They’re getting closer!”

“Energy field,” the Doctor explained, pulling out her sonic and scanning the tunnel. “I can establish a sort of temporary forcefield here that will block the turtles from being able to get out through the tunnel. It should hold for a few hours, which is enough time for us to get out of here.”

“Excellent,” Romana said, and they all watched as the tunnel filled with a blue-ish green glow. Soon afterward, they heard what sounded like a thousand falling bowling pins, which must have been the turtles crashing against one another.

“Phew,” Graham said. “That was a close one, wasn’t it Doc?”

“Doc?” Romana asked, and they could practically see the gears clicking into place. “You’re not…?”

The Doctor grinned larger than her friends had ever seen. “Guilty as charged.”

“I don’t believe it,” Romana said, walking up to her and looking her up and down. “Well, judging by the outfit, I guess I can.”

“Hey!”

“I mean, it’s better than some, but still.”

“I’m blonde!”

“But your hair’s a _mess_.”

“You were the one who told me to go blonde! And I did! Two regenerations in a row!”

Romana laughed and smiled when the Doctor brought her in for a hug. “I have missed you, Doctor. And you make a fine woman, if I do say so myself. Not all of us can handle it.”

“Thank you,” the Doctor said with genuine pride. “And these are my friends, Yaz, Ryan, and Graham.”

“Nice to meet you all,” Romana said. “I expect you’ll all keep a good eye on her for me,” she winked. “She’s trouble.”

“Don’t we know it,” Yaz said.

“Well,” Romana said, picking a piece of rock off her dress and starting her way out of the cave. “Looks like I really didn’t have that covered after all.”

“You usually do though,” the Doctor shrugged. “And they wouldn’t have charged at us if I had left you all alone.”

“Well I probably would have offended them at some point regardless,” Romana said. “But what you did with the forcefield back there? I would have never thought of that under such pressure. I was impressed.” She gave the Doctor another smile. “Proper impressed. And not just with that. With this new you—your bravery and your friends and your kindness. All the things that make you the Doctor; as always.”

“Thanks,” the Doctor said.

“I also like your ear cuff. It’s quite pretty.”

“Really?” the Doctor said, turning around to her three friends. “Guys, Romana likes something I’m wearing!”

“Don’t push it.”


End file.
